US officials ‘concerned’ over protest violence
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — US officials voiced their concern over violence in protests which began in Sulaimani last week during a meeting with Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) leadership in Erbil on Wednesday, according to an official statement.
Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs David Schenker and Deputy Assistant Secretary for Iraq Affairs David Copley, accompanied by US Ambassador Matthew Tueller, visited the Region’s capital on Wednesday to meet with a number of KRG officials, including Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani, and Prime Minister Masrour Barzani.
Speaking on a number of topics including energy and security, “US officials emphasized the importance of freedom of expression and the media” and “expressed concern over the recent violence” in Sulaimani province, according to a statement shared by the US embassy.
Unpaid for much of this year amid an economic crisis and budget disputes between the KRG and the federal government, civil servants began protesting their delayed salaries in Sulaimani last Wednesday. Protests have since spread to other provincial towns, Halabja province and the Garmiyan administration.
Nine people have been killed, including one member of the security forces, and 65 have been injured as of Wednesday night, Ali al-Bayati, a member of the Iraqi Commission for Human Rights told Rudaw English on Thursday morning.
Families of some of the dead have said their relatives were shot by security forces while walking through crowds of protesters.
Media outlets have also faced crackdowns, with the headquarters of Sulaimani-based opposition outlet NRT closed by security forces on Monday.
British Ambassador Stephen Hickey has also voiced concern over violence used against protesters, who were met with water cannons, rubber bullets and tear gas in Sulaimani city.
"I urge the security forces to respect the demands of the peaceful protests, and I urge the protesters to protest peacefully," he wrote in Kurdish on Tuesday.